It's hard to hire the perfect person for a role - you know it, and we know it. Because of a combination of epic-low unemployment, an aging workforce and the lack of a trained pipeline (in construction, manufacturing and healthcare, in particular), the odds of landing the right candidate for a position can feel stacked against you.

Setting performance goals is a common HR tactic, but we don't often talk about why we do it. For many businesses, it's ingrained in the process and has become another line on the list to cross off as performance reviews come around.

With the economy firing on all cylinders and talent acquisition getting increasingly ruthless, many companies are evaluating their benefits as a tool to not only attract quality employees, but also retain the ones they have.